Entrepreneur Domas Jakutis – about working with family members and how he solves problems

D. Jakutis says that the business started by his father Kazimierz in 1993 was not a family business and for a long time no one called it that: “Dad founded an individual company (later it was renamed UAB), and he invited relatives and friends to work together. We discussed whether, when relatives work as employees, it can be called a family business? Maybe no. A family business is when family members participate in it, make key decisions and share all the financial benefits. So it wasn’t a family business back then.”

Speaking about the business model that used to be very common – working with friends and relatives, D. Jakutis said: “There is a saying that if you want to keep friends and relatives, don’t do business with them. Dad has said that he heard this in seminars and trainings, but he thought that this would not happen to him. However, there were painful lessons: some friends are no longer friends, brotherly relations were broken for maybe five years due to disagreements in business.”

D. Jakutis himself, like his three brothers, was close to the business created by his father since childhood, the first office was in the same house where the family lived. However, as he himself said, the parents never put pressure that one day their sons would have to occupy certain positions here:

“Our parents allowed us to be close, they drove us to meetings, production facilities, allowed us to do certain jobs in the summer, and always taught us what money is and its value. I am grateful to my father for instilling in me that money is not raffled off, it is earned. Since I was a child, I have worked side by side with workers in one position, so later, when I came to administrative work, it allowed me to be the same simple guy who worked with those people, and while climbing the career ladder, not to forget how hard work it can be to load machines and etc.

We never had a hierarchy, rather linear communication prevailed. During Dad’s reign, his relationship with employees was probably beyond all the red lines of today, when employees become friends, godfathers of children, and celebrate their birthdays and the children’s birthdays together. I don’t think it’s appropriate to get that close, but there should be a distance.

Despite being close to the business, our parents never programmed us to come to it. We didn’t feel the pressure in this place, their only wish was for us to find our way.”

The first of the brothers to enter the business was the eldest son of Jakučiai, Adas, a few years later – Domas himself, and even later – Liudas and Saulius.

“In 2007 Adas already after his studies, having worked in other companies, expressed his desire to establish a franchise store in Šiauliai and start e-commerce. trade. I think that the beginning was the most difficult for him – it is not easy for a young person to come to an old stagnant team and tell about some e. stores, when all the old managers laugh and say: who will buy online for you here.

in 2008 there was such a turning point when dad hired managers, his brother was also a director, and he wanted to step back a little bit, but at the same time he set goals for the business. However, the vision of the business with the existing managers fell apart and disagreements began. What can be done in such cases? Either start solving the problem or run away from it. Dad chose to step back, eventually considering selling the business. For a year, the sale process and the break-up of companies took place. A crisis came, as a result of which the deal was frozen for an indefinite period, Dad was forced to return. Had to fire his brother as director.

in 2010 I came to the business, at that time a salon manager was needed. They told me: either come now to do the internship or we will hire someone else. I came, the team to work with was really difficult. I used to attend meetings, they were chaotic, the generational difference was very clear, all the employees had already worked here for 10-15 years, so they seem to know everything best. Then I silently thought to myself: if I were to do business, it wouldn’t be with this team.

Time passed, I got involved in the business little by little. I became the commercial director in 2014. – director, I didn’t want to become one, but dad pushed me, saying that I was ready for it. Then I told him: Dad, there are people in the company that the customers don’t want, so what to do? He replied: change it. We made a plan for who would need to be fired, who would have to reduce their salary, etc.

in 2014 another of my brothers – Liudas – joined the business. He has been successfully developing a used car business for about four years, and he has it in him, and developed good negotiation skills there. Dad invited him to the company because he didn’t have someone to negotiate prices. He came to the position where it was also difficult, there were words “impossible”, “we did everything, we have the best prices”. And two years later, we started buying about 40 percent. at better prices than before.

In 2015, young Saulius joined. He came to marketing, more to my team. Coming was perhaps the easiest for him, because there had already been a change of employees and other changes, said D. Jakutis about his and his brothers’ integration into the business and added that it was not easy to come to work here:

– It was necessary to earn the trust of the team. From the outside, maybe less, but inside, this attitude always prevailed: father’s son, everything has already been done, served on a silver plate and what is left for him to do here. But there were many challenges and stress, endless tasks, we are still dealing with them. When I came, the turnover of the company was 2 million, today we have over 15 million from this particular brand.”

Over the years, the company grew to seven independent organizations, subsidiary companies were created by separating activities from the parent company. As D. Jakutis said, it was the third stage, the whole family is involved in the business, all of them are directors of separate companies:

“One brother – separate e. the director of a trading company, the other – manufacturing companies, I – in retail stores and on the Internet, the youngest brother – marketing manager, dad retired to the board, mother also played an important role in this story – she was involved in employee selection and microclimate monitoring for a long time, she gave advice, told what to do so that an unhealthy climate would not prevail and interfere with business.

And there came such a day when we began to jam among ourselves, brothers. We didn’t share something. You say, wealth. Not wealth. It was more of a lack of division of roles, who should do what.

How did we handle it? We sat at the table and started talking about what is wrong with us, where we get stuck, why we keep coming back to the same situations. Most of all, we stuck with each other, raising the question of why we have to be directors. Are these the best roles for ourselves for self-fulfillment, but most importantly, are we the best versions of managers for the business?

Sometimes those questions are painful, sometimes you have to take off your hat. But in order to get out of the gears in which we were already stuck, it was necessary to take a self-critical look. And you see that maybe one of the brothers is more of an individualist, so what kind of team management can we talk about, the second is more inclined to other areas than to what he does, the third found out that working with people is too difficult for him and doesn’t want to do it anymore. So we sat down, talked about how we don’t want to work like this, reviewed everything and replanned. I think that today we have shared the roles that are most suitable for each of us.”

There is no lack of mutual challenges when family members work together, but is it easy for employees to work with family members? “It’s both easy and difficult,” said D. Jakutis. – Easy perhaps because there is a very clear hierarchy, very strong support, involvement and desire to do. It’s difficult because you have to maneuver.

One is the leader, but the opinion of another family member is also important. This is how it is in a family business – whether a manager or a family member is hired, if there are contradictions that cause sparks, they need to be managed and some manager has to be sacrificed. Today, it seems to me that the best practice is an in-grown, not an external leader.”

How not to get angry within the company and maintain stability? “I think I won’t tell you any magic recipe: talk, talk and talk again. And to resolve those situations with family members, said D. Jakutis and added that family business is guided by four values ​​that are guided by them: respect, team, comfort, promise.

– From a young age, we were instilled with respect for employees, ourselves, and each other; you can’t do anything without a team, so it’s important to get it together, ignite it, and you can achieve the overall result only thanks to the team.

Comfort is not a thing, it is in our mind, so here comfort includes customer trust in the showroom, and home delivery, and the promise you make, and the garbage you collect when delivering the product. And then you lie down and feel fullness and comfort.

Keeping a promise is very important for both yourself and the client in terms of deadlines, quality, etc. transactions. Even in the time of the knights, it was one of the most important values. Today, I think it’s coming back with a bang, because sometimes it’s much more important than the contract.”

At the end of his presentation, D. Jakutis shared 4 (un)written rules that all family members follow in business:

“The first rule is that the other half cannot work in the group of companies. There was everything, maybe disappointment, but it was so good and peaceful because of such a decision, because the friction with the brothers is enough, and if there was a daughter-in-law, there would be even more friction.

Dad has come up with the following thing: one grandson – 1 percent. business shares. That’s right, we get a percentage of the shares for each grandchild.

Shares are not sold outside the family. During those 30 years, there were many risks to break up ownership, to attract various partners, but it was not divided like that. True, we have one exception – one of the company’s long-term directors, who is not a family member, owns less than 1%. shares.

And one more important thing – the size of the remuneration of family members is dictated by the market. Fair valuation, separating the owner’s share and how much you get as an employee, director, creating value. That healthy appreciation is always with us.”